Detachably-secured label.



J. FRENCH.` DETAGHBLY SECURED LABEL. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 1I 1908.

Patented A101. 21, 1914.

v 3C v M'nessesf In v/ZLOK JOSEPH FRENCH, OF WOONSOOKET, RHODE ISLAND.

DETACHABLY-SECURED LABEL.l

inaansa.

Speeication of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 21, 1914.

Appiianon'mea June 1,1908. Yserial No. 436,011.

To all 'whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, JOSEPH FRENCH, a citizen of the United States, residing at Woonsocket, in the county of Providence, State of Rhode Island,have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Dctachably-Secured Labels, of which the following is a specification, Areference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

The general object of the invention is to provide in convenient and practical manner for quickly attaching labels securely to articles of all classes, such as aforesaid, with ready detachability, and without the use of spurs or other metallic fastenings, and without injury to the appearance or condition of such articles, however fine or delicate the latter may be, and also. without liability to cause injury to the rolls of mangles or other machinery employed to operate upon the articles thus labeled.

-article of apparel, etc., by

rlhe gist ofthe invention consists in a label fastened temporarily to the desired a thread or threads serving to securely hold the label to the article during the required treatment of the latter, but which may readily be unraveled or withdrawn, and removed, to permit the label to be detached at pleasure.

The invention may be carried into effect in various Ways.

The invention is illustrated in the draw ings, in which,- y

Figure l is a face view of a portion of an article of woven material having a label attached thereto in conformity with the invention. Fig. 2 is a back View thereof.

Fig.3 is a sectional detail on an enlarged scale. Figs. 4, 5, 6 and 7, respectively, are views showing different ways in which labels may be applied.

, 'llhe invention provides in novel manner '.for the attachment of labels for the purpose of temporary identification to articles of apparel or .other personal use, household linen, etc;, about to undergo the operations of a laundry of a cleaning establishment, or other analogous treatment, and designed also for employment in connection with manufacturing processes for attaching labels temporarily to articles of apparel orl other varticles of woven and knit goods, or of leather, or to parts of such articles. At the present time it is usual in laundries to mark white or light-colored articles by writing or printing thereon with ink, and shoe-linings and other parts of shoes in process of manufacture are printed or stamped in ink. Some use is made by laundries of labels consisting of pieces of white tape furnished with metallic spurs, more. especially in connection with articles which do not show or readily take markings in ink, such as dark pieces, stockings, etc., a label of this character being attached by forcing the spurs through the material of an article and bending or clenching them at the back or inner side thereof. The required marking or imprint is e'ected upon the label, instead of upon the article itself. The subsequent removal of the label is effected by straightening the spurs and withdrawing them from the article. -But the application of ink to many articles of fine and delicate character is undesirable and not permissible, and they would be injured `by the spurs of the described labels. Hence the use of either of these means of identification in connection ,each figure, the article of which a portion is shown is 4designated 1, the label is designated 2, and 3, 3, are removable attaching threads. The said threads are combined with each `other and with the label and the article to which it is applied, so as to unite the former to the latter by means of stitches passing through the said label and article.Y Premising that the number of stitches, as well as the number of threads-and the particular mode in which the stitches are formed, may vary in different applications of the' invention, it will Vbe observed that in each of the instances shown in the drawings two threads v *are` employed, the thread 3 being formed into loops 3b, 13" Figs. 2 and 3, passing through the4 article and label" from one side of these latter to the-other thereof, and the Athread 3El being extended through the said loops at the said other side, thus locking the loops so as to prevent 4their withdrawal.

These stitches are produced in practice by means of a two-thread lock-stitch sewing .the article. For additional security, one or more stitches maybe made in the article at each side or end of the label, as shown,V so. that strain upon the label may not start the stitches and disconnect the label. Loose ends 3c, 3c, of the threads are left`projecting at both ends of the line of stitches, partly 4for the same reason, but chieiiy to serve as pull-ends whichl may be grasped for the purpose of pulling lout the threads.

When it is desired to detach the label, one of the projecting ends of the thread 3 is taken -hold of and such thread is pulled lengthwise through the loops of thread 3, which is quickly and easily eiiected. Thread 3 Aand the label then are free to be removed.

The stitches shown in the drawings and describedabove may readily be produced by two-thread lock-stitch sewing'machines of kinds at' present in use.

It will be perceived that the gist of the invention consists in securing labels tempo'- rarily to the required articles by stitches which are sufficiently rm to hold the labels attached during the handling or treatment of the articles, but which may be unraveled at will by simply grasping pull-ends and drawing thereon, so as thereby to release the labels and permit the removal thereof.

In Figs. 1 and 3 of the drawings the label is shown attached by a line of stitches extending transversely acrossthe same near one end thereof, leaving the other end and Greater portion ofthe length of the label ree. This facilitates the handling of the'A label in writing upon the same or presentingitto. the printing devices of a marking machine. In Fig. 4. the label. is doubled crosswiseupon itself and its two ends are ,attached 'to the article by the line of stitches, so that the loop of the label projects from the edge of the article like the pull-strap of a shoe. This arrangement of the label also facilitates the marking or printing of the same. In Fig. 5 the line of stitches extends, lengthwise of the label. In Fig. 6, two lines of stitches extend across the width of the label, one near each end thereof.. In Fig. 7 a single line of stitches extends cross the label, at the middleof the length of the latter.

I .usually employ a thread 3 which,`by

reason of the nature of its material, or the treatment to which it has been subjected,I

or its greater size, is less liable to yield and bend than the vthread 3. This 'favors the.'

straight position of the former thread in the. stitches, and enables this result to be atthan thread 3. A coarse thread is easier tol grasp and pull upon than a line one.

To guide in selecting the proper thread to pull upon in raveling the stitches, the threads 3, 3a, .are differentiated from each other in appearance; This is el'ected by making ,use of threads differing from each other in size, as in the present instance in the drawings, or by the use of threads diiering in color, as indicated also by the drawings, or otherwise in obvious manner.

To aid in finding the pull-thread 3", I employ for the same a thread of color and appearancemost likely to contrast with those of the article with which the invention is employed. For instance, I use a dark or black thread in the case of light-colored articles, and a yellow or red thread for dark goods. I claim as my invention,-

`l. The combination with an article substantially such as specified, and an identilication label or the like, of a draw-thread Vend gaging with the said label and with the said article and securing the said label to the article with capacity for readily being detached bygwithdrawal of said thread.

2. The combination with.an article substantially such .as specified, and an identii cation label or the like, of threads engaging with each other and holding the label to the article and adapted to be readily unraveled and withdrawn to release the label.

3. The combination/with an article, of a laundry markingconsisting of a washable identification label or the like, and a thread formed into a plurality of loops passing through the article, and a secondthread eX tending lengthwise through the said loops and adapted to be withdrawn lengthwise therethrough tonrelease the label, whereby thellabel is detachablyn secured to the article.

4. The combination with an article, and an lidentification label or the like, 'of two threads interengaging in a 'plurality of stitches holding the label to the article, one thereof a draw-thread which is relatively less fiexible than the other whereby it occupies in the stitches a position facilitating its withdrawal, whereby the label is detachably secured to the article.

5. The combination with an article, and an identificati/n abel or he nke, 0f 'two threads interengaging in al plurality of stitches holding the label to the article, one thereof constituting a draw-thread and differentiated in appearance from the other, to guide 'in unravelng the stitches, whereby the label is detachably secured to the article.y

In testimony whereof I ax my signature in presence of two witnesses.

y JOSEPH FRENCH. Witnesses H. A. COOK I. HERBERT loND. 

